A single bottlenose dolphin, who might have been separated from its pod, is being considered responsible for a troubling series of attacks on swimmers in Tsurga, a seaside town in Fukui Prefecture in Japan.
The latest incident occurred on August 20, when a man in his 50s was bitten on both hands as he was trying to drive off the dolphin. This attack marks the 18th reported case since July 21 and the second within a span of two days.
According to NBC News, the region has seen over 48 dolphin bite incidents in the last 3 years with some victims suffering major injuries including broken bones. Most of the bites however were minor — some little more than scratches — but in one recent incident, an elementary school child wound up requiring 20 to 30 stitches, coastguard official Shoichi Takeuchi told AFP. The recent biting incident required beach staff to coax a dolphin away from a swimming area using water skis.
A Coast Guard notice warned of the potential dangers of the rising number of dolphin bites, stating, “Last year, there were many incidents in which swimmers were bitten by dolphins, with some requiring more than 10 stitches.”
Researchers suspect a lonely male dolphin behind these attacks as injuries on the dorsal fin of the dolphin involved in the last incident match those of a dolphin off the coast spotted last year, provided dorsal fins are unique to each dolphin, similar to fingerprints in the case of human beings.
Tadamichi Morisaka, a researcher at the Cetacean Research Center at Japan’s Mie University, who has seen photographs, told NHK, Japan, “It’s reasonable to assume that they’re the same individual.” He also said that this particular dolphin appears to have been accustomed to human interaction over the years leading to his behaviour as it is unusual for bottlenose dolphins to approach, interact or bite with humans.
In a mail to NBC News, Morisaka also said the dolphin mainly wants to merely “interact with humans”, possibly owing to its loneliness rather than harm them.
Chief executive and founding director of Dolphin Research Australia, Elizabeth Hawkins, further said, that the animal may be a “sociable solitary dolphin” that has somehow got isolated. And, when socially isolated, Hawkins said, they “can be quite pushy, they can be quite aggressive, they can bite.” Hence, she emphasized the necessity of ensuring the creature is given space.
As the situation develops, local officials continue to monitor the dolphin’s behaviour and advise caution for those entering water.
